New guy. Help please

[Amzz]

Hi there everyone I'm Amzz and i recently started playing this game on the PS4 and so far I'm enjoying myself. However its a little confusing as I progress on. I'm not sure how to progress accordingly with the difficulty of the story. I started off with Thaumaturge to progress on into a black mage later on. Level 16 with him. Also got the archer class to 11. Trying to get him to 15 for the second requirement of Black Mage. I'm currently on the "Call of the Sea" story quest. However while doing the quests it feels as if im underleveled. The bosses are much higher level and monsters seem harder to kill.

TLDR;
How can I get stronger atm, any quests I can do or gear I could get?
I heard this is a very popular server yet I dont see many people, or anyone talking?
Is there a voice program in game to communicate to others ?
Are free companies like guilds, and how do I join them?

Please shoot me a reply, friend request or message. I would greatly appreciate it.

-Amzz

[Enkidoh]

Welcome to Eorzea!

How can I get stronger atm, any quests I can do or gear I could get?

There are many ways to gain EXP to level in FFXIV, quests (both sidequests, which have an exclamation mark inside a 'Q', and main scenario quests, which have an exclamation mark inside a flaming meteor symbol) are just one way. FATEs, completing entries for the Hunting Log for each class, completing the weekly Challenge Log (that also rewards gil as well and resets every week), undertaking levequests (also called 'guildleves') and even accessing a new zone will all reward exp. Thus, by doing different forms of content will all give you exp which all adds up. You can also get an EXP boosting ring by completing the training quests for your class at the Beginner's Hall that will also boost your exp gained til level 30 (see below).

Gear you should be getting through doing your main scenario and class guild quests but also dungeons, of which are you are currently up to the first one (Sastasha Seagrot) also has gear drop in it too. Levequests which I previously mentioned are also a possible source of gear as well, but it can be random as to what you end up with. Finally, in Western La Noscea there is the Beginner's Hall which if you undertake the training quests there, will reward you with a set of 'Novice/Brand New' gear that is very decent gear at that level all the way to level 30 potentially.

I heard this is a very popular server yet I dont see many people, or anyone talking?

Gilgamesh as I understand it is indeed a very populated server, however I have heard it is more 'endgame' focused and so would explain why the lower level zones seem more quiet, as most players would be congregating in the high level areas like Revenant's Toll and Idyllshire. But you should still be able to find new people like you there as well.

Is there a voice program in game to communicate to others ?

There is no official voice function for the game, although PS3/PS4 users can use the PSN's voice over function to communicate with other PS3/PS4 players my understanding, and PC users can use third party software like Teamspeak, however I have no experience with that so I am unsure what is the most popular one to use.

Are free companies like guilds, and how do I join them?

Free Companies (FCs) are indeed FFXIV's version of Guilds or clans, where as linkshells (LSes) are more player chat channels that often are used as de facto guilds because you can only join one FC at a time but can be a member of multiple LSes (up to 8). To join either, often you'll see players shouting out invitations for their FC or ls but more often than not the easiest way is to just shout out that you would like to join a FC and explain the sort of FC you are looking for, whether one for just socializing, one for endgame activities, or something like roleplaying. I'm sure you'll get quite a few invitations to FCs as a result. If you do not wish to do so another way is to check the forum for your server and see if there are any FCs or lses that are inviting that have posted in there and take note of their contact details, and make contact with that person in game. Sadly I play on a different server (Balmung) otherwise I would happily invite you to the FC I co-run with my partner.

Either way, good luck!

[Amzz]

Thank you for the insight, I had a feeling youd respond tbh :P I've noticed your name everywhere and you seem to be a first responder to most threads. I appreciare your help. Is server transfer possible btw from mine to Balmung. Initially i had wanted to play there however the server is restricted due to the size of its population. Also another question. If i play on ps4 and someone plays on pc. Is it possible to still be together. Are the servers linked. Also which system do you use if you dont mind me asking.
Thank you

[Enkidoh]

You're most welcome. It is possible to transfer to Balmung (I know that for a fact as I transferred there myself from Ridill back at the end of 2014), but I think there are times when even transfers are locked. So if you want to transfer to it it's best to try during it's 'quiet time' which is early/mid morning US time, seeing as it's a US server and thus most of it's players would be either in bed asleep or at work or school.

And yes, PC and PS3/PS4 players all play together on the same servers, servers are only grouped by 'data centre' which are arbitrary groups designed to reduce congestion during patches. They are also listed under their physical location (Japan, North America and Europe), but again there is no restriction to playing a server that is not in your actual region - a US player can freely play on a JP server for instance.

[Amzz]

Ah I see. Thanks once again ������ do you know the price for a realm transfer ? Also ill probably hook up a keyboars and mouse to my ps4 haha

[Frizze]

A cheap USB keyboard would certainly make communicating in game easier. As for a transfer, i just peaked at the mogstation and it said a server transfer is $18. Its located under "additional services" if you want to read through the particulars.

[Amzz]

A cheap USB keyboard would certainly make communicating in game easier. As for a transfer, i just peaked at the mogstation and it said a server transfer is $18. Its located under "additional services" if you want to read through the particulars.

Thanks for checking it out ������ i ended up trying the transfer but i ran into an error 401. Still tryna figure out what caused it though. Frustrating :P

[Niwashi]

Welcome to the game.

I'm going to skip most of your questions, since Enkidoh seems to have already covered them, but here's one thing I can add a bit to.

while doing the quests it feels as if im underleveled. The bosses are much higher level and monsters seem harder to kill.

The quests all have a minimum level, and if you're allowed to take the quest, you're at a level that the developers expect people to be able to complete it. That said, some of them are indeed quite challenging on-level, and can be made much easier by over-leveling them a bit.

Another very common reason for feeling underleveled though (even when you really aren't) is being under-geared. So if lots of things are seeming difficult, see if there is better gear available.

At your level, the armor that you get for doing the Hall of the Novice training is very good, matched only by some of the better pieces that can drop from the treasure chests in the first three dungeons of the game. Talk to the Smith at the Adventurer's Guild of any city, or at the Beginner's Hall in Western La Noscea to do the training. There is a series of exercises and you'll want to do all of them. (Once you get your Archer up to level 15, do them all again with that, since Disciples of War get different gear rewards than Disciples of Magic. And if you ever decide to take on a tank class, repeat the exercises yet again for tank training and gear.) Besides the nice gear rewards, the training itself is pretty decent, designed to check if you're picking up on the basics of how combat works in this game.

That will have you well set for armor for a while, but your most important piece of gear is your weapon, so make sure that's up to date as well. Your class quests reward weapons at a level at or near the level of the quest, so if you're keeping up with those (which you should be) they'll provide decent weapons. If you want a weapon upgrade before taking on that class quest (I seem to recall the level 15 THM one being one of the challenging ones), either check out the Market Board to see what weapons other players are selling, or I believe the NPC vendors at Camp Drybone in Eastern Thanalan sell weapons around your level.

The Market Board isn't as reliable as NPC vendors, since it's dependent on what players have offered for sale at the time, and what price they chose to set for it. Sometimes what you want won't even be there, and other times it will be offered only at an exorbitantly high price, but it's still worth checking. For one thing, someone may be offering what you want even cheaper than NPCs would sell it for. But in addition to that, you might be able to find a crafted piece that's higher in quality than the normal stuff you get from quests or NPC vendors. (Look for an icon showing two crescents conjoined at the bottom corner. That marks High Quality gear or materials.)

[Amzz]

Thanks for the tips man. I feel so under leveled. Im trying to do my class quests rn and i got all my professions as an extra source of exp. Im still figuring out things and its difficult being a newbie. Gearing has always been a problem for me in games, and i found some equipment is the Satasha? Dungeon. But its not letting me equip it for aome reason even though i should be able too. But ive barely played a week so im hoping ill be able wrap my head around things soon. Also do you know what i could do to fix the problems im having with my world transfer. 401 errors and 601s.

[Naria]

So if you have completed Satasha then you should have gotten a set of "Brand-new" gear + a ring from completing the Hall of the Novice which should be better stat-wise than your current gear (level alone is not always an indicator of how good a piece of armor is). I'd recommend equipping that. Also your accessories are a bit behind you should be able to buy better ones from the vendors in town (and a hat to go w/ the "Brand New Robe"). While we are always up for answering questions on the forum, if you are feeling overwhelmed and would like some more timely advice, you might want to approach a mentor in game (player with a crown icon by their name) and ask for an invite to Gilgamesh's Novice Network. The Novice Network is an in-game chat channel for newbie help.